SAN FRANCISCO – Uh-oh.
Things were supposed to get better with Adrian Peterson back in the Vikings' lineup, right? Rhythm was supposed to be achieved, miscues corrected, protection improved, frowns turned upside down, etc., etc. Right?
Right!?
Well, scratch that. And scratch Peterson actually touching the ball in a preseason game that was billed as the most thorough and final dress rehearsal for the regular season.
Final at Candlestick Park: 49ers 34, Vikings 14. And if you think that's an ugly line, it could get even worse depending on the results of a magnetic resonance imaging exam that's due to be performed on Vikings defensive tackle Kevin Williams' injured knee on Monday.
Peterson did suit up and play two snaps in his preseason debut but was pulled on third-and-10. Coach Leslie Frazier said afterward that the plan was to play Peterson only three plays and not have him carry the ball. The Vikings threw twice with Peterson in the game, using him as a play-action fake on an opening deep-ball incompletion to Greg Jennings.
"We got out of him what we wanted," Frazier said of Peterson.
In seven possessions with Ponder at quarterback, the Vikings went fumble, punt, punt, punt, a 1-yard touchdown pass to rookie free-agent fullback Zach Line on a 28-yard field set up by Chad Greenway's interception, interception and a 3-yard touchdown pass to Joe Webb, who outjumped a defender on third-and-goal late in the third quarter. That capped a 12-play, 75-yard drive and ended Ponder's night. He completed 17 of 23 passes for 116 yards, two touchdowns and two turnovers.